Platner Officially Declared Democrats’ Nominee for Senate in Maine, Teeing Up Marquee Contest with Collins

Marine and oyster farmer Graham Platner is officially Democrats’ nominee for the marquee U.S. Senate race in Maine this year, setting up what will certainly be a bitter contest against Senator Susan Collins. Mr. Platner says recent stories about his personal life are a distraction from the work he is trying to do on behalf of Mainers. Mr. Platner entered the Senate race last year as a relative unknown, having only served as his home town’s harbormaster and chairman of the town planning board. His entrance into the race energized progressive Democrats from across the country who poured money into his campaign even after Governor Janet Mills — who was recruited to run by Senate Democratic leadership — jumped in the race. “I did four infantry tours in the Marine Corps and the Army. I’m not afraid to name an enemy. And the enemy is the oligarchy. It’s the billionaires who pay for it, and the politicians who sell us out. And yeah, that means politicians like Susan Collins,” Mr. Platner said in his campaign announcement video last summer. Senator Bernie Sanders endorsed Mr. Platner 11 days after launching his campaign. Speaking to supporters on Tuesday, Mr. Platner pushed aside recent press reports about his behavior, including sending sexual messages to women who are not his wife and allegedly grabbing at ex-girlfriend and forcibly keep her in a room more than a decade ago — an allegation he denies. “Now, the national pundits — the political establishment — they keep looking for that one story, that one headline, that one moment in my life that they can define the campaign by, but in trying so hard to understand me, they fail to understand that this is not about me at all,” Mr. Platner said to applause. “This is a movement about us — about the far too many working far too hard and struggling far too much at the hands of the ruling class.”Shortly after Mr. Platner was declared the winner, all of the major outside campaign groups rallied to his side, saying he would defeat Ms. Collins in November. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee posted a graphic showing President Trump and Vice President JD Vance praising Ms. Collins for her work. The group then reposted a message on X from the Maine Democratic Party which linked to a website called ShadySusan.com.Before the primary voting took place, Senator Tina Smith of Minnesota, who was appointed to her seat after Senator Al Franken resigned following sexual harassment allegations, forcefull defended Mr. Platner. “Graham Platner is gonna win because he has connected with Mainers on what they really care about: How this country can work for them, not just the wealthy. He’ll win because he’s not part of the Washington establishment,” Ms. Smith wrote. “If I voted in Maine he’d have my support, no question.”A big concern for Mr. Platner, however, may be keeping Democrats inside the tent between now and November. On Tuesday, Ms. Mills received nearly 20 percent of the vote even though she dropped out of the race more than two weeks before early voting started last month. In a statement Tuesday, Ms. Mills said nothing about Mr. Platner’s victory. “I am grateful to Maine people and incredibly proud of what we have accomplished together. I will continue to fight with everything I have to improve the lives and livelihoods of Maine people,” she wrote.

Platner Officially Declared Democrats’ Nominee for Senate in Maine, Teeing Up Marquee Contest with Collins

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